Progress Virginia Condemns Vote to Defund Planned Parenthood

Richmond, Virginia–In an early morning meeting, members of a House Health Welfare and Institutions Subcommittee voted to advance HB 2264, a bill sponsored by Delegate Cline that would defund Planned Parenthood.

Based on model legislation drafted by a national anti-abortion organization, this bill would prohibit the Virginia Department of Health from granting funds or entering into contracts with certain health care providers that perform abortion. This is a blatant attempt to deny Virginia women access to the full range of comprehensive reproductive health care services.

“It is none of Delegate Cline’s business where a woman decides to get her health care. Every woman in Virginia deserves access to safe, high-quality health care at a family planning clinic of her choice,” Anna Scholl, Executive Director of Progress Virginia, said Tuesday. “Defunding Planned Parenthood means that the full range of family planning options will be unavailable to the individuals, families, and communities that are most medically underserved in the Commonwealth.”

Planned Parenthood health centers offer comprehensive health care services to tens of thousands of Virginians annually, including family planning services, contraceptive counseling, STI testing and treatment, and cancer screenings. It is one of the few remaining providers that continues to offer consistent and reliable care to Medicaid recipients, and importantly, often serves as a crucial entry point into the health care system for these and other individuals.

Virginia Planned Parenthood health centers provide contraceptive care to thousands of low-income women each year. Nationally, more than one-third of low-income women who receive publicly supported contraceptives receive care at Planned Parenthood. A majority of Virginians agree that a woman who has decided to have an abortion should have access to safe, high-quality, and affordable health care.